


When He Lost Her

by MariaMagica



Series: When in Time [5]
Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Angst, Depression, Detectives, Enemies to Friends, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Martyr Complex, Paranoia, Rebuilding bridges, Slow Burn, break-up, fluff in later chapters, mention of murder, self-hate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-29
Updated: 2016-11-04
Packaged: 2018-08-27 17:31:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8410378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MariaMagica/pseuds/MariaMagica
Summary: When a murder implicates Rika and threatens to reveal the secrets of the RFA, V is forced to make the hardest decisions of his life.





	1. Discovery

**Author's Note:**

> Events take place after Seven’s route. V survived getting shot, Rika is alive and Saeran, with the help of a therapist, is doing well.
> 
> This is the most serious and difficult fic I've ever written and it's definitely not a fun ride for V. I sincerely hope I did his character justice.
> 
> I‘ve added a whole bunch of MCs in my last fics so to avoid confusion, here’s a quick guide on them:  
> MC1/standard MC: Nicknamed ‘MC’, 707’s girlfriend  
> MC2: Nara Soong, Jaehee’s girlfriend  
> MC3: A-Yeon Lee, Jumin’s new assistant  
> MC4: To be introduced!
> 
> (Anything remotely detective in this fic is probably 100% bullshit.)

16:45 – Jumin Han, 707, Jaehee Kang, Saeran, Yoosung✧

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Yoosung, how is your internship going?

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>Great! I’m actually enjoying it, weirdly enough  
>Can’t wait until I’m done though – I want to start helping animals!  
>(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

 _Jumin Han:_  
>I’m happy to hear that. Make sure you always do your best.  
>Saeran, did you find a job yet?

 _Saeran:_  
>I applied to everything, such as newspaper delivery and dish washer  
>No luck, the fact that my background is so vague is not helping

 _Jumin Han:_  
>If you’re in financial trouble, please tell me. I can help.

 _707:_  
>Jumin is such a nice daddy!

 _Saeran:_  
>I’m good but thanks

 _Jumin Han_  
>It’s normal to want to help out family.  
>Don’t call me daddy, it disturbs me when you say it.

 _707_  
>I bet he likes it when Zen does  
>(° ͡ ͜ ͡ʖ ͡ °)

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>omg haha

_\- V has logged in -_

_Jumin Han:_  
>Stop it. 

_Jaehee Kang:_  
>V?

 _707_  
>Eyyyy V!

 _Jumin Han_  
>Jihyun?

_\- Yoosung✧ has logged off -_

_Jaehee Kang:_  
>Yoosung...

 _V_  
>Hello everyone  
>It’s alright, Jaehee  
>I understand

 _Jumin Han_  
>What I don’t understand is how you’re able to use the messenger.

 _707_  
>All thanks to me, GOD Seven!  
>(•_•) ( •_•)>⌐■-■ (⌐■_■)

 _V_  
>It’s true, Saeyoung helped me a lot  
>He’s created an app which allows me to participate in chat by talking in the microphone  
>And it reads out all written text to me including who said it

 _Jaehee Kang:_  
>That’s amazing!

 _Jumin Han_  
>That really is fantastic.  
>Thank you very much Saeyoung, this means a lot to me as well.

 _707_  
>I’m blushing!  
>(◕‿◕✿)  
>Though it’s still in alpha  
>V’s helping me work out the kinks

 _V:_  
>I’m very grateful though, I’m sure other blind people will be as well  
>To give some feedback right away, the app does not handle any emojis well  
>It just reads out all the symbols  
>Also I have to talk a bit slower than normal otherwise I get an error message

 _707:_  
>I’m on it!  
>Thanks V!

 _Jaehee Kang_  
>How have you been doing V? I haven’t heard from you in a while.

 _V:_  
>I’m doing quite well  
>The professionals Jumin recommended are very helpful  
>I’m currently learning braille

 _Jumin Han_  
>I’m glad for once you didn’t refuse my help.  
>If there’s anything else you need, please let me know.

 _V:_  
>Actually I do need a favor, Jumin  
>I would like to visit Rika this evening

_\- Saeran has logged off -_

_V:_  
>Ah, I didn’t realize Saeran was here too.

 _707_  
>I’ll add the option to show who is in the chat as well.

 _V:_  
>I’m actually surprised any of you are still talking to me at all  
>Or even helping me  
>After everything I’ve done

 _707_  
>I will never forgive you for letting my brother suffer for so long  
>But thanks to you, no one else in the RFA shared the same fate  
>And I don’t carry a grudge

 _Jumin Han_  
>You are still my dearest friend Jihyun.  
>But I don’t think it’s a good idea to visit Rika

 _V:_  
>Please  
>I need to know how she’s doing  
>I haven’t seen her in a year

 _Jaehee Kang_  
>…

 _Jumin Han_  
>Alright. I’ll send Driver Kim your way.

 _V:_  
>Thank you Jumin  
>Once again I owe you

_\- V has logged off -_

 

V knew he wasn’t going to be alone in Rika’s apartment but was still unprepared for a gentle woman’s voice when the door opened. He guessed she was around 40 or 50 years old judging by her lingo. She led him by the arm towards the living room, a kind gesture but one that wasn’t needed – V still remembered her home like the back of his hand.

There was another voice in the distance, a man this time. He was calling for Rika. V felt his stomach twist. Last time he had seen her, she was crying after he had been shot. On the doctor’s advice he hadn’t visited her but he just had to know how she was. When he was at home alone, his worries plagued his mind all night.

It was good that she had caretakers looking after her. They were nurses, best of their field, Jumin promised. He hated how much advantage he was taking of Jumin. It wasn’t right. He had done nothing but lie to him. He wasn’t even sure if the things Jumin did for him were out of guilt or friendship.

“Jihyun!” He heard the sweet voice of his fiancée and soon enough was surrounded in a familiar embrace. She was wearing the perfume he got for her birthday, the soft soothing smell of roses and vanilla. He could feel her long glossy hair on his hands. He held her tighter and she buried her face in his shoulder. He desperately wished he could see her smile.

They sat down on the couch and even though V couldn’t see them, he swore he could feel the presence of the two nurses hovering around in case something happened. The scent of coffee and tea hung strong in the air, it was comfortable and pleasant.

Rika lead the conversation, saying how much she missed him, how good he looked and complaining about how her days were filled with nothing but trips to the doctor and the psychiatrist. She made it seem like they were boring, mundane things. Her voice sounded like she was constantly daydreaming. V wondered if she was as lonely as he was. She must be.

“You haven’t been seeing someone else, have you?”

The question came out of nowhere. It was doubtful, insecure… Yet he could make out a tiny sliver of anger hiding in it.

“Of course not.” He said truthfully. 

“Really?” The anger was there again, a little more prominent.

“I promise.”

She hummed happily. While it sounded like this appeased her, he knew that this meant she didn’t believe him. It was fine. He would visit more often and prove it if he had to. Rika was still his everything.

 

09:00 – Jumin Han, 707, V, A-Yeon Lee, Zen

 _V:_  
>Once again, thank you Jumin  
>Rika was doing well

 _Jumin Han:_  
>That is good to hear.  
>You should focus more on yourself now.

 _707:_  
>wAIT  
>EVERYONE STOP TALKING

 _ZEN:_  
>You mean typing?

 _707:_  
>SHUSH  
>THERE’S SOMEONE ELSE HERE  
>HOLD ON  
>K I HID ALL OTHER CHATS  
>I CAN TOTALLY SEE YOU  
>MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN OR I WILL GIVE YOU A VIRUS  
>GOOD LUCK RECOVERING YOUR POLICE FILES

 _A-Yeon Lee:_  
>Police???

 _ZEN:_  
>Wait, is this like MC all over again?

 _707:_  
>I’VE TAKEN EXTRA PRECAUTIONS AFTER THAT SO I NOTICED THEM RIGHT AWAY  
>NO YOU WON’T STOP IT WITH THAT SHITTY ANTI-VIRUS LOL  
>IT’S GONNA SPREAD, YOU’RE SCREWED  
>ANSWER AND I WILL STOP

 _?:_  
>Okay I give  
>Please stop

 _ZEN:_  
>!!

 _Jumin Han:_  
>What is the meaning of this?  
>Who are you and why are you here?

 _707:_  
>I CAN ANSWER THAT

 _ZEN:_  
>Saeyoung, cut it out with the caps lock

 _707:_  
>Whoops!  
>Here, lemme change something

_\- ? has changed their username to Hani Nur Binti -_

_Hani Nur Binti:_  
>What  
>How did you  
>How

 _707:_  
>☜(⌒▽⌒)☞  
>Also from the looks of things, you uses she/her pronouns.

 _Jumin Han:_  
>How we know is irrelevant.  
>You’re in a private messenger.  
>If you’re indeed with the police, all I have to do is make one phone call and get you fired.  
>Explain yourself right now.

 _Hani Nur Binti:_  
>Fine  
>My name is Detective Hani  
>I’m with the KNP

_\- Hani Nur Binti has changed their username to Detective Hani -_

_ZEN:_  
>Unusual name

 _707:_  
>It’s Malaysian!

 _A-Yeon Lee:_  
>Please stop going off-topic ^^;;

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Why is the Korean National Police infiltrating a private chat?

 _Detective Hani:_  
>That’s classified

 _Jumin Han:_  
>I’m calling right now.

 _Detective Hani:_  
>Wait!!

 _707:_  
>Let me guess, the KNP doesn’t know you’re doing this right? Oh oh~ naughty naughty!~

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Last chance. Start talking.

 _Detective Hani:_  
>I’m here because I’m investigating a murder that has taken place  
>The leads I’ve received made me believe the RFA is involved  
>I don’t know more but it’s important that everyone cooperates

 _707:_  
>You’re being very vague on purpose. I’m just going to open that file and find out myself!  
>…  
>Oh crap

 _ZEN:_  
>What? What??

 _Detective Hani:_  
>Stoop  
>Stop locking me out of my pc

 _707:_  
>I’ll unlock it if you tell us everything!

 _Detective Hani:_  
>Alright  
>I know when I’m outsmarted  
>The murder took place last Wednesday  
>Mrs. Houng, the wife of Dr. Houng was strangled to death by a young man whom we arrested on the spot  
>The perpetrator seemed to have zero relation with the victim  
>The symbols drawn around the victim, the tattoos and demeanor on the perp and the exact positioning of the victim leads us to believe this is cultism.  
>He mentioned a name. Rika.

 _ZEN:_  
>Shit

 _Detective Hani:_  
>Unfortunately he refused to say anything after that  
>According to my records Rika allegedly committed suicide more than a year ago  
>This chat clearly proves otherwise

 _V:_  
>Is that why you hacked into the RFA?

 _Detective Hani:_  
>Yes. Rika’s death report was extremely inconsistent.  
>Not to mention that Jihyun Kim was still registered as her fiancé

 _V:_  
>There’s no way Rika could have given an order to murder someone

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Jihyun, don’t say anything. 

_Detective Hani:_  
>How are you so sure of that, Mr. Kim?

 _Jumin Han:_  
>None of this matters. You used illegal means to gather information.  
>I will get you fired and you will not be able to use any of this in court.

 _Detective Hani:_  
>You are correct  
>However if you do, I will just hand my files to the next detective  
>All he has to do is to track Rika down and get the right information from her  
>Just because we can’t use this in court doesn’t mean we can’t use it for the case

 _Jumin Han:_  
>…  
>You are a horrible person.

 _Detective Hani:_  
>I’m just doing my job, Mr. Han  
>I suggest working with me  
>If you all are so sure Rika could not have done it, help me find whoever did  
>Tell me everything you know  
>Whether or not Rika ordered anything, I cannot let this cult murder another person

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Assistant Lee, please call the Detective and set up a meeting.  
>Saeyoung, please ban her from the chat.

_\- Detective Hani has been banned -_

_A-Yeon Lee:_  
>Right away sir.

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Saeyoung, how was she able to get here in the first place?

 _707:_  
>I wouldn’t be surprised if she used the KNP’s own services to get in  
>I’m sorry. I promise I’ll up the defenses even more right away

 _ZEN:_  
>Don’t blame yourself Saeyoung. No one expected this. We all thought Mint Eye was gone for good.

 _V:_  
>Jumin, I must talk to her

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Of course. Hyun, please inform everyone else. Make sure they do not talk to the KNP.

 _ZEN:_  
>This is going to be trouble, isn’t it?

 _Jumin Han:_  
>I’m afraid so.

 

His heart had stopped when he heard Rika’s name mentioned in the chat. How was this possible? They had been so careful in destroying anything that might remotely make people aware of Mint Eye’s existence. The few people Rika had under her care were so shocked when Rika crumbled after Saeran had shot him, that he was convinced they’d stay quiet. Especially under the threat of being thrown in jail afterwards. Did they forget someone? Were they too careless after all?

V was tapping his foot nervously as he sat in a chair in Jumin’s office, waiting for the detective to arrive. He held his cane with two hands, he just had to hold on to something. Jumin didn’t speak a word behind his desk but it was obvious he was restless too. Almost every few seconds he heard him fidget with his pen.

“Mr. Han, Detectives Hani and Park are here to see you.”

“Thank you Assistant Lee. Please let them wait a minute, then send them in.”

The red-headed assistant closed the door and he heard Jumin get up from his chair, walking over to the other side of the room.

“Can you see them? What do they look like?”

“I see a tall pale man with black hair gelled backwards who I assume is Detective Park, and a short dark-skinned woman with a bob-cut. I’m guessing that’s our notorious Detective Hani. They both seem to be around our age, no more than 34 years for sure.”

Jumin sighed and returned to stand in front of his desk. V got up and used his cane to move himself to stand beside him.

“Please let me do most of the talking, Jihyun. If we can get them off our backs with as little information as possible, the better.”

V nodded, hoping his nervousness did not show on his face. Thank goodness for his large sunglasses.

The door opened and he heard two pair of feet march their way on the marble floor.

“Welcome. I’m Jumin Han. This is my friend, Jihyun Kim, alias V.” He heard them shake hands and he held out his own hand in the air, not sure where they were. He felt a warm large hand firmly grab his.

“Detective Do-Yun Park.” His voice was deep, almost pleasant. After the shake, another hand grabbed his. This one was smaller, gentler but if he thought the last hand was warm, this one was blazing.

“Detective Hani Nur Binti.” Her voice was higher, a little uncomfortable. Maybe nervous?

“Ah yes, we spoke earlier.” The female detective made a sound of agreement. V started to suspect her partner didn’t know about her earlier hacking attempt.

“Please sit. Would you like a drink?” Jumin offered.

“No thank you. My partner has informed me that you have more information a woman named Rika.” 

The man was a bit too direct for his tastes. He sounded annoyed, most likely because whatever Detective Hani had said to him. V felt himself become more uncomfortable by the second.

“Yes. As you probably know, Rika is V’s fiancée. Both of them are my childhood friends.”

“Mr. Han, why did you keep the fact that Rika was alive a secret?” Detective Hani asked.

“For her own safety. You see, back then we genuinely thought she had killed herself. We were very distraught about it. Imagine our faces when we learned she was alive. She had been kidnapped by what we believe is now the cult you mentioned.” The lie poured out of Jumin’s mouth smoothly. V changed his standing position, trying his best to stay calm.

“What was the name of the cult?”

“We don't know.” He could hear the scratching of pen on paper.

“Why was she kidnapped by this cult?”

“We don’t know why. As you can imagine, we didn’t exactly ask.”

“Why didn’t you inform the police when you found out?”

“We found her by chance, she was standing outside in the shopping center alone. We took her with us. Rika was severely traumatized and we didn’t want to make it worse by going to the police with information she couldn’t provide.”

“We’d like to talk to Ms. Rika.”

“I’m afraid I can’t arrange that. Under specific doctor’s advice, we cannot remind her of that troubling time. Not to mention she won’t be able to say anything useful in her condition.”

“It’s true,” V spoke, “Even I had to go through a lot of effort just to meet her.”

“Even as her fiancé?” Detective Hani asked, genuinely surprised. He nodded.

The barrage of questions continued for a good hour, at some point they were just going round and round in circles. 

“I apologize detectives, but I’m afraid we don’t have anything else useful.” Jumin said at some point, clearly tired.

“Hmm. Well, we thank you for your cooperation. Please call us if you know more.” 

The detectives shook their hands again and left the office. V could hear them argue in the hallway. Though it was mostly Detective Park’s angry voice.

“- next time you want to give away important information, you do that to me and NOT to suspects -“

“Charming people.” Jumin stated matter-of-factly. V hoped he’d never see them again.

 

In the evening he stayed for dinner at Jumin’s penthouse. Initially he had refused but Jumin was still as stubborn as ever. Zen seemed happy to see him, though V always wondered if he was just using his natural acting skills or genuinely meant it. It terrified him.

They involved him in a discussion involving the premiere of a large musical that Zen starred in. The white-haired man was obviously excited, though V didn’t miss the amount of pride Jumin’s voice contained. He started teasing Zen by offering to pay for all forms of advertisements – mostly expensive ones – and chuckled when Zen became more and more flustered and annoyed the more he pushed.

It was nice to just listen and not get involved. He found himself drifting off into the abyss of his mind, only to return when Zen asked him if he wanted to come see the musical. V told him he wasn’t sure, he would have to check his schedule around that time.

“Why are you lying, Jihyun?”

The words cut right through the warm atmosphere, tension as thick as a blanket. V clenched his cup with both hands. He heard Zen shift in his chair.

“I’m-“

“I know you are. I can tell when you point your face down. Just like last time.”

He didn’t know why he lied. He wasn’t sure why he didn’t want to spend time with his friends despite feeling lonely every day. He didn’t know why he did half the things he did nowadays.

“If you don’t want to be around us, you should say so.”

“Jumin, stop. It’s not a big deal-”

“It IS a big deal!”

“I should go.” V got up from his seat and grabbed his cane next to him.

“V, wait!“ Zen tried but he ignored the actor, opening the front door and closing it as fast as he could. As he walked to the elevator, he could hear Zen and Jumin shouting at each other. 

He truly was the worst.

 

A week passed and he wouldn’t have realized it had his smartphone not told him the date. All he remembered doing was visiting his doctor, the library and cleaning his cameras. He decided to go outside, for no reason other than to stop lying in bed and losing track of time. Maybe he could take a small walk. Just as he locked the door, he suddenly felt someone touch his arm.

“Mr. Kim.” Oh no, that voice. Dread filled him instantly.

“Detective Hani? What do you want?”

“I’m sorry to disturb you like this but this is important. I must talk to your fiancée, Ms. Rika.”

V felt rage boiling in him. These people just wouldn’t leave well enough alone. Cockroaches, the lot of them. He ignored her and started walking away, trying to feel things with his cane as fast as possible in the hope to get away quick without tripping over anything.

“Please listen!” The detective was running after him, catching up easily. V cursed his blindness. “My partner and I are running out of leads on this case. He is planning to interview everyone in the RFA separately unless we get an interview with her.”

V stopped and turned around, feeling the short detective nearly bump into him. He couldn’t find himself to care. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because unlike my partner, I understand that you guys would like to avoid any more pain this cult has caused you. This is why I asked a colleague to hack me into your app.”

“Really now? Am I supposed to believe you’re doing this out of the goodness of your heart?” He scoffed. She wasn’t the only one who could smell lies a mile away.

“I do it because prior information allows me to get the best results from people without damaging those who have nothing to do with it. I am very good at what I do, Mr. Kim.”

“All the rule-breaking must help then.”

“I will admit that I’ve also been voted most likely to get fired by my colleagues.”

V sighed and shook his head. “Look, we were honest when we said she wouldn’t be of any help. At best, she’ll engage your questions. At her worst, it’s like she’s not even on this plane of existence.” His own words hurt him more than he wanted to admit.

“One conversation. One visit and I’ll stop asking, no matter what she says.”

He considered his options. If he said no, they’d start harassing the entire RFA. The person most affected by it would be Saeran… Or he’d bring her to Rika and who knows what could happen.

He had already failed the RFA enough.

“I’ll get a taxi. We can go to Rika now.”

“Perfect. I’ll call my partner and ask him to come here.”

“No. Just you. I don’t want her to panic when she sees so many strange new people.” And it’ll be easier to control in case anything goes wrong, he thought.

Worst case, he’d claim he was the leader of Mint Eye. Better him than anyone else to take the fall.


	2. Sacrifice

The taxi ride was awkward. Detective Hani had called her partner to inform what she was doing. It seemed all Detective Park did was yell at her while she sighed and said the occasional yesses and no’s. He could barely make out what he was saying because of the noise on the road.

“ – just took this case because it’s personal to you – “

She hung up on him and for a few minutes there was nothing but the humming of the engine and the smell of cheap leather. V tapped his fingers on his knee to try to distract himself.

“You have the most unusual hair color Mr. Kim. I suppose it fits your artist persona.” The comment was so random, V could only guess she was trying to make small talk to dissolve the tension between them.

“Please call me V. Also my hair color is none of your concern.”

“Pfft. Wow alright, I get the hint.”

When they arrived, the detective insisted on paying which was fine by him. He rang the doorbell and hoped with all his heart Rika was in a good mood today.

“V? We didn’t know you’d visit today.” It was the male nurse from last time. The other woman didn’t seem to be around.

“Apologies Ben, it’s important that we speak to her. This is Detective Hani of the KNP.”

“Well, alright. Come in and make yourself comfortable, I will get her.”

He seated himself on the large couch while the detective sat on the chair in the corner facing him. Ben had placed a pot of tea on the low coffee table in front of them but neither of them made a move to fill their cups. He heard the familiar clicking of heels coming their way.

“Rika, my love.” He got up and felt her hands grasp his. She still smelled as lovely as ever.

“Who is this?” Her voice was cold. It made him even more anxious.

“I’m Detective Hani. I’m terribly sorry to disturb you Ms. Rika, but I need to ask you a few questions.” 

“I don’t want to.” Rika tried to turn away but V held on to her.

“Please darling. You will be helping the detective. You always want to help people, right?” He wasn’t sure if he convinced her but she walked past him and sat on the couch closest to the detective, right where he had been sitting. He placed himself next to her.

“Ms. Rika, what can you tell me about the cult that kidnapped you?” God, she spared no punches.

Rika was rather quiet, he could hear her shift around and fiddle with her dress buttons. He tried to hold her hand again but she pushed him away.

“…to spread happiness for the world is a cold place…” He heard her mumble.

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”

More mumbles, softer this time. This might work out after all.

“Can you tell us anything from the time that you were kidnapped?”

“Are you V’s girlfriend?”

“What?” Detective Hani asked, incredulous. Oh no. No no no.

“He is my sun. You’re taking my warmth away from me. I knew it. He’s going to leave me, they all do!”

“Rika, no, I am still yours. Please-“ He felt Rika grab his arm, her voice now directed at him.

“You said that whatever I did, you’d love me. That I would always find comfort in your world.” She sounded desperate now, a childlike sadness masking the danger that would come if he said the wrong thing.

“And I still mean it. You’re my universe Rika, I will always be a part of you. I will prove it to you no matter how long it takes.”

The room fell silent and she let go of his arm. V took a sigh of relief, he had been able to talk her out of her paranoia.

“No!” The detective yelled.

Before he could register what was going on, he heard a loud crash, glass shatter and felt hot water splash on his pants. Instinctively he pulled his legs away from the floor while Rika was screaming, trashing like a wild cat on the couch.

“Let me go! Let me go!”

“What is going on?” Ben ran into the room. V didn’t realize he was gone in the first place.

“She tried to throw the entire pot of tea at him. I had to restrain her.”

“Why? I love you, Jihyun…” She was crying and he reached out to her, only to be held back by a set of hands.

“I think you both should leave right now.” Ben said in front of him. It wasn’t a request.

 

The taxi ride back was filled with a tension that he couldn’t describe. He could practically hear Detective Hani think next to him. He wanted to yell at her for putting Rika in such a state, for making Rika doubt his love for her. Yet he knew that the only one to blame was him. Maybe he should have refused after all. Or maybe he should have allowed Detective Park to join them, perhaps Rika wouldn’t have felt so paranoid. A million scenarios ran through his head but none of them could revert time.

“Are you alright?”

V turned to her. “Why do you ask?”

“Your legs. You got hit with the boiling water.”

“I’m fine.” Truthfully it did sting a little but his pants had absorbed most of it.

“You shouldn’t have interfered. I could have handled it.” He huffed.

“Are you serious?!” He could feel the detective’s body heat, now having her full attention. “You would have been burned badly, possibly even scarred!”

“That’s fine.”

“That’s not fine at all!”

“I need to prove my love for her! I told her she could do anything to me and I would stay with her.”

He heard nothing but their breathing, his heart was beating so loud he didn’t hear anything else. Why couldn’t they understand that it didn’t matter what happened to him?

“…She blinded you, didn’t she?” Her voice was considerably lower than before. It was a guess by the way the question was laced with uncertainty but V jerked his head away from her too quickly, balled his hand into a fist so tight his nails were digging in his skin.

“Good God.” She whispered. He hated her pity.

They didn’t say another word until they arrived back at V’s apartment. V almost tripped trying to get out of the taxi, wanting to forget this whole painful day.

“I’ll let my partner know that Ms. Rika is indeed in no position to answer any questions. I’m sorry for having disturbed you both. Thank you for your help.”

He had gotten the outcome he wanted to most, yet he felt like he had lost. In the back of his mind he heard a tiny voice screaming warning signals but he pushed it away like he always did.

 

Sunday he spent the morning in Jaehee’s Café. Saeyoung and MC were there too, the former tapping away on his laptop while his smartphone was plugged into it, the latter chatting with Jaehee, Nara and him about the latest episode of ‘Bake Off’. He barely knew anything about it but chuckled as the girls energetically gossiped about the pastries and the contestants.

Occasionally Saeyoung would ask him questions about the functionality of the app. V considered the idea of having Rika’s voice read everything out loud to him.

“Speaking of Rika, how is she?” Jaehee asked. V could feel everyone’s gaze on him.

“She was doing quite well. She hasn’t missed any of her appointments thanks to her nurses.”

“That’s good to hear.” Jaehee’s voice was uncertain. He wasn’t sure what her feelings were behind them. He barely knew anything about her as they weren’t close and she wasn’t loud enough for him to read her.

“Will you visit her again soon?” MC asked.

He thought about his last secret visit to her. As much as he wanted to go back, he didn’t want to risk angering her again. He could be patient, just for her. “Not for a while.”

“I don’t think you should visit her at all.” Saeyoung said.

“Why would you say that?” V asked, though he already knew the answer.

“She’s dangerous. And she’s not going to change.” It came out so ridiculously calm, it was like each word was a slap on his face.

“She’s my fiancée, Saeyoung.” He tried his best not to growl. His cheeks were on fire.

“And Saeran is my brother.”

The girls were quiet as death, either terrified of what might happen or unsure what to do. V felt his anger deflate, replaced with a mellow burning pain in his heart. Saeyoung would put up a laughing face most of the time but V realized that perhaps out of the entire RFA, Saeyoung probably hated him the most. And he didn’t blame him for it.

“I’m sorry.”

“I know you are. I’m sorry too. It was cruel of me to say it.”

The atmosphere lightened up but any warm feelings the group had was gone. When Jaehee and Nara started cleaning their café, MC tried to alleviate the silence by talking about cats. V simply nodded and said nothing else until he left.

 

He didn’t even know what day it was when he turned on the radio, longing to hear some voices in the morning. He’d barely slept. He didn’t want to call his parents, he didn’t want to worry them again He had listened to all his audio books twice. He hadn’t logged into the messenger for a while, feeling like he was only going to burn more bridges that way. There were no appointments planned for anything. 

He fiddled with some of the buttons until he found a news station.

“…We can confirm that another murder has taken place near Central Hospital. A male nurse was strangled to death in his own home. We have received word from an anonymous source that this murder and the murder of Dr. Huong’s wife both are the work of cultism. The police currently refuse to comment.”

He barely had time to process the news when his phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Mr. Ki- V? It’s me, Hani.”

“How did you get my number?”

“I asked your friend Mr. Han. V, have you heard the news?”

“Yes, literally a minute ago. Look, if you’re going to harass Rika again, then we have nothing more to say.”

“V, it’s Ben. He’s dead.” 

His throat went dry when he realized the male nurse he heard about was the one that had been taking care of Rika. This wasn’t happening, this wasn’t happening, this couldn’t be happening-

“The chief is now cracking down on us. I’ve done everything I can to keep you and your friends at bay but I have no choice. We need to start conducting interviews on everyone in the RFA, including Ms. Rika. The department is desperate to give a positive answer to the press.”

“You promised me. One visit and you’d never ask again.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I don’t have any other options.”

He knew he could let it happen. They would question everyone and the RFA would lie just for him to keep Rika and him safe. And then there’d be another murder. As long as this didn’t get solved, the RFA would constantly be in the spotlight of the police.

He didn’t give himself a choice.

“Please come to my apartment alone. I promise I will tell you the entire truth.”

He could hear her discuss things with whom he assumed had to be Detective Park. It was taking so long he was worried that he had said something wrong. 

“Alright. My colleague will interview your friends and I will head to you alone. I’ll see you soon.”

His phone rang immediately when he hung up. There was no doubt in his mind that Jumin was calling him, most likely to tell him what to do. He put his phone on silent.

 

“I don’t believe you at all.”

V gaped at her. He had just told her he had set up Mint Eye in order to bring happiness to the world, how he used a poison on his victims to brainwash them and how he had involved Rika in this. He even showed her the logo of the cult. He was presenting himself on a silver platter and she wasn’t taking it.

What more could she want?

“What’s not to believe? You’re looking for a cult. I was the head of that cult.” He made exaggerated hand movements pointing to himself. He could hear the detective scoff in front of him.

“It’s true that the logo of this cult correlates perfectly with the symbols we’ve found around the two victims. However! There’s no way I can believe that you of all people are a cult leader.” She got up from her chair and was walking up and down the living room, the low heels of her shoes or boots methodically tapping on the linoleum.

“Why not? I know all the details. I can even tell you the locations of where we gathered.”

“Random locations in random buildings. That’s not exactly damning evidence, V.”

He could hear her stop near his desk where his cameras decorated his desk. Despite not having much use, he kept them pristine. It was a habit he had gotten used to.

“These pictures are lovely. Did you make them?” She asked. He nodded, wondering where she was going with this. She mumbled something about talent and what a shame. He didn’t care to ask.

“This particular picture… This is the RFA, yes? Your friends?” She tapped on something and he assumed it was the large frame that hung straight above his desk, a picture he had taken of everyone before the whole mess with Rika’s disappearance began. 

“Well, I’m not sure if we’re still friends… But yes.”

“Oh? I didn’t get the impression they didn’t want to be with you.”

“Ever since I started the cult, I’ve been lying to them. Their trust in me isn’t exactly sky high.”

“Why lie? Why not bring them in the cult?”

He didn’t have an answer to that. He was racking his brain for one but he couldn’t find a good excuse. She started walking around him now, slow to the point of irritating.

“When your friends were threatened, you brought me to Ms. Rika, knowing this could incriminate you. You’ve let your fiancée blind you out of ‘love’. You insisted that I have let her shower you with boiling tea. You’ve lied to your friends and kept them out of your so-called cult.”

Her feet stopped right in front of him.

“You have a martyr complex.”

The silence was like a brick. He could hear a dog barking outside.

“Sorry, what?” He felt her presence looming over him, not sure if she was trying to intimidate him in some way.

“You’re sacrificing yourself. Someone else started this cult, didn’t they? You’re punishing yourself for God knows what and trying to take the fall. Guilt? Blackmail?”

If anyone had taken a picture of him right now, they would’ve thought he was imitating a fish that just got dragged out of the water.

“N-no, that’s not true at all.” He spluttered, knowing full well he had only convinced the detective she was right. Damn him! Could he do anything right for once?

“Did you give the order to have Dr. Houng’s wife and Ben killed?”

“No.”

“What happened to Mint Eye?”

“I stopped once I realized what I was doing to Rika. I haven’t done anything with it for years now.”

“None of your followers decided to go their own way?”

“There were only three or four of us… And they all just wanted to go home and forget.”

Once again it was eerily quiet. He started to wish he had put on the radio, maybe a talk show loud enough to drown out his own thoughts.

“Tell me about Rika.”

He froze. “Why?”

“It’s obvious the cult had a huge impact on her. Please. Talk to me about her.” She sat down in front of him again.

There was no doubt in his mind that she must suspect Rika of being the leader of Mint Eye but he knew she had no evidence. He sighed and told her about Rika’s past, how she’d been adopted, the loss of her dog and the founding of the RFA.

“So she was already, pardon my phrasing, mentally unwell?”

“Yes. She – I, I used that to convince her to join Mint Eye.”

He heard her sigh deep. “Had she sought out help in the past?”

“Yes, I had recommended her to a therapist. She stayed with him for around three weeks before she stopped.”

“What is the therapist’s name?”

“Doctor… Jerry Gray? Yes, I believe that’s it.”

“An American name? Interesting.”

Yoosung’s aunt had recommended him, he remembered. He didn’t know why this was relevant however. He obviously hadn’t helped Rika.

“One last question. Where exactly did you get this brainwashing poison from? Nothing in your background hints at any knowledge of chemistry or poisons.”

Oh. Damn. He realized he didn’t even know where Rika had got them from. By the time he realized Rika had been using them, it was the furthest question from his mind. “I… ordered them from a specialist website. I don’t remember the name.”

“Hmm.” She wasn’t convinced. He wouldn’t have convinced a child.

At that point the detective’s phone beeped. He heard her rummage in her bag and she got up.

“I’m out of time. Thank you very much V, it was more helpful than you realize.”

“You’re not going to arrest me?”

“For what? Confessing to be a cult leader when there’s zero evidence? My department would laugh me right out of the building.”

He was so sure that by this time he’d be sitting in a jail cell, that he was rooted to his chair. 

“I’ll show myself out. Also, V?”

“Yes?”

“I can tell you care a lot. I think your friends are very lucky to have you. But for once you should be selfish and do what is right for you. Good luck.”


	3. Revelation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is really tough for me but I'm getting there! Next chapter there will finally be some V fluff plus more of our favorite RFA pairings!

V checked his phone. 10 missed calls, 6 new messages. Most of them from Jumin, some from Zen and even one from Jaehee and Saeyoung. He sighed and called his raven-haired friend.

“Jihyun! Why haven’t you answered your phone earlier?! Did you get a visit from the detectives?” He heard Jumin’s exasperated voice. He must have worried himself to death if he didn’t greet him properly.

“Yes, I got a visit. Don’t worry Jumin.”

“How can I not? Everyone’s got a visit from Detective Park, except for Yoosung and Saeran. I’ve convinced him to wait until they were done with their hospital work. What did you tell him, Jihyun?”

V contemplated for a few seconds on what to say. It was so tempting to lie again but he just couldn’t.

“I asked Detective Hani to visit me. I told her about Mint Eye.”

“What??”

“I also told her I was the leader.”

“WHAT?! This is just… Unbelievable. Jihyun, I will get you a lawyer right away.”

“No no, no need. I’m still at home – she didn’t believe me.”

He heard a sigh of relief on the other side. “Thank goodness, someone with a bit of common sense. Still, this is very serious. Jihyun, I need you to go to Yoosung and Saeran. I will send Driver Kim.”

“What in the world for?”

“Right now, Saeran is the most vulnerable and with you throwing out Mint Eye like that, he will suffer the most once he gets interrogated. You should tell them exactly what you said so they can be prepared.”

V panicked. His actions once again would hurt someone. Hani was wrong, his selfishness was what was causing the problems.

“Alright, I’ll do it. I would like to borrow your driver to go to Rika after.” He had to check up on her as well. No doubt Jumin made sure she still had her nurses with her but what if she wasn’t safe? He had to know.

“Again? Jihyun…”

Why? Why was Jumin so against him visiting Rika? Surely he of all people would understand? Were they not all close friends at one point?

“Please, Jumin-“

“She’s not the same person that we used to know, Jihyun. Not anymore.”

He had enough. “Don’t bother asking Driver Kim. I’ll get a cab.”

By pressing the end button on his phone, he felt like he had properly burned down the bridge leading to his best friend.

 

Yoosung and Saeran were both so surprised to see him at Yoosung’s apartment that they became flustered. He sat in what he assumed what Yoosung’s computer chair, facing the young men. They were both very quiet, so much that when V explained what he had done in the morning that he wasn’t sure if they were still there or decided to leave and let him talk to himself. 

It was Saeran who finally broke the silence.

“So… Am I in trouble or what?” His voice was shaking, angry, nervous. It was painful to hear.

V shook his head. “No, they have no idea of what happened to you. As long as I don’t mention your name and they don’t get it from Rika, 

“I hate this. I just… I need some air.” Saeran got up from bed. He heard Yoosung ask softly if he should come along, but Saeran kissed him and said he need a little time for himself on the balcony.

He could hear Yoosung fiddle around with his shirt.

“I’m so sorry Yoosung. For everything I’ve done to you and Saeran.” 

What was the point of apologies? They weren’t going to fix anything. He twirled his cane in his hands and prepared himself mentally to leave without saying goodbye. The sooner he got out of their lives, the better.

“V… Thank you.” 

What?

Yoosung took his silence as permission to continue talking. “Sometimes I wonder how it would’ve been like if Rika had never met you. If she would have actually talked to us about her problems instead of you…”

V swallowed, trying his best to stay and listen instead of wanting to run away.

“But then I realize it probably wouldn’t have mattered. Maybe she wouldn’t have made the RFA and instead dived headfirst into Mint Eye. Maybe she would’ve also taken Saeyoung and Zen and Jumin…”

He heard the blonde brush a hand through his hair. “And maybe I would have met Saeran earlier but I’d be controlled by Mint Eye. Who knows? The point I’m trying to get to is… I finally understand what everyone else in the RFA have been telling me. You’re trying to help us. I think the way you do things is wrong but I understand. I don’t know if I would have done it differently to be honest.”

V’s eyes welled up as tears formed in the corners, threatening to spill. He felt Yoosung wrap his arms around him and he hugged him back, his gray vest covering most of the young man.

“Thank you Yoosung. You… You have no idea how much that means to me.”

“V…” Yoosung mumbled in his shoulder. “Will you please keep no more secrets from us?”

His words hit him harder than he could describe. He was keeping secrets from everyone, constantly. He was a lying mess. But Yoosung had tried to reconcile with him again and he couldn’t allow that to slip away.

“I don’t know if I can Yoosung, but I can promise I can try. I will try, for you. No more lies. No more secrets.” He felt that he meant it. It was a good feeling and he wanted to hold on to it.

They released each other and Yoosung dramatically plopped back onto his bed.

“Well, I guess I should change my status from hate to casual dislike for you.” Yoosung’s laugh was infectious and V found himself chuckling along.

“I can live with that. I hope maybe one day Saeran can say the same.”

“I don’t think Saeran’s ever hated you. What Rika did to him… It made him hate himself more. I hope in time he will see how amazing he is.”

“You’re truly happy with him, aren’t you?”

Yoosung let out the tiniest giggle. “He makes me feel safe, comfortable, like I can just be whoever I want to be. There’s not a single day where I don’t wake up and look forward to spending it with him. He doesn’t make me feel like I’m doing something wrong, like I have to worry about everything I do. It’s more than I could have hoped for in life.”

“Holy crap, you’re so cheesy.” Saeran voice was barely a warning for Yoosung as V heard him pounce on the blonde, Yoosung letting out a large yelp. V couldn’t stop laughing. They truly deserved each other.

They fared him well when he left and as he walked down the stairs, he realized this was the first in a very long time that he had hope for things to come.

 

He was mentally exhausted when he entered Rika’s home in the evening. The taxi driver had attempted small talk with him but all he could do was rest his head on the leather seat.

When the door opened, he was greeted by the same lady whom he met the first time. There was another woman with her and they were hesitant to let him in. It was only when he was able to confirm he was Rika’s fiancé that they let him in, with the promise of leaving her alone for a small while after that.

Rika was already in the living room. He took his place next to her on the love seat. She wasn’t wearing his perfume this time.

“You’re without her, I see.”

“I know she upset you. I’m sorry, you will never see her again.” This pleased her immensely as she hugged him, kissing his lips. She settled herself on his lap and put her face against his, bumping into his sunglasses. V enjoyed the warmth of her body.

“Do you know where Ben went? He's always very kind to me but he didn’t show up today.”

V wasn’t surprised that no one had told Rika about Ben’s death. Maybe he would tell her but not today. He didn’t want to ruin the moment. 

“I don’t know. But Lia is also nice right? She’s always there when Ben’s not around.”

“Yes, I like Lia. She reminds me of a mother. It’s quite nice.”

She snuggled up to him some more. He could live like this. One day he could live together with Rika permanently and they’d spend their evenings in comfort.

“Lia was upset this morning. She thought I was in the bathroom and she was crying in front of Iseul. I don’t know why. It made me sad.”

Ah, there was the Rika he adored. She was always thinking of others. He kissed her forehead and ran his fingers through her hair.

“I wish… I could make her happy.”

“There’s no need to worry about that. She has other people she can rely on for support. Like Iseul.”

Rika shifted in his lap. “It’s not good enough.”

Huh?

“Jihyun, I want to get out of this house and away from Lia and Iseul. I want to help people again.”

Oh no.

“People don’t know what they want. They just end up destroying themselves. We need to help them become happy.”

Why? Why why why? 

“Rika, you tried this remember? It almost got me killed.”

“I’ll be more careful this time! Jihyun, we got so far together! Let us run away, the two of us, start fresh and do what is right!”

“No.” He didn't even wait for her to finish the sentence. Mint Eye was done, it was over. No more of the same ever.

In an instant, she pushed herself off of him.

“I thought you loved me.”

He didn’t want this. 

“I thought I was your universe.”

He was so tired.

“Do you not want to be happy?”

All at once he remembered the conversations that he’s had on this day. He couldn’t stop the sentences from crashing into his brain.

_She’s dangerous. And she’s not going to change._

_For once you should be selfish and do what is right for you._

_She’s not the same person that we used to know. Not anymore._

_He doesn’t make me feel like I’m doing something wrong, like I have to worry about everything I do._

He clutched his shirt. It was like a black hole had opening in his stomach, threatening to suck in all his organs. He couldn’t breathe.

“I… I have to leave.”

“Jihyun? Jihyun!!” 

He heard Rika’s voice, drawing him back to her but he forced himself to go. Lia asked what was wrong but he apologized and left in a hurry, as if the room itself was suffocating him. Out on the driveway he stopped and took his time to breathe in the cold night sky. The cool air going in and out of his lungs calmed him down considerably.

After a solid ten minutes, hands shaking oh so slightly, he grabbed his phone and gave it the command to call a taxi.

 

He was lying on his bed, blanket twisted from all his tossing and turning. He couldn’t fall asleep, no matter what he tried. His legs were hurting from exhaustion. Rika’s words kept ringing in his ears. He desperately needed a distraction. He grabbed his smartphone from his bedside table and brought it to his face.

“Call…”

Call who? Jumin, whom he had spurned horribly? Zen, who surely had heard everything from Jumin by now? Saeran, the last person who would want to hear from him? Yoosung, who’d listen but relentlessly question him until he admitted what happened? Jaehee, whom he barely knew? Saeyoung, whom he fought with last time? MC, another person he rarely talked to?

A childish, rebellious thought entered his mind.

“Call detective.” He ordered. If Rika wanted to be paranoid, so be it. Maybe he’d even tell her he talked to Hani the next time he saw her, see if she liked that. He put the phone next to his head on the pillow.

“This is Detective Hani speaking.” Her high-toned voice rang through his speaker. She picked up almost instantly. She didn’t sound tired at all. Must be part of the job, V thought.

“Hani, this is V.” Was it appropriate to call her by her first name? She did call him V, after all.

“V? Is something wrong?” A lot of things were wrong.

“No, nothing is wrong. I was just lonely and needed to talk to someone.”

“And you decided to call me?” She was right. He was a client, not a friend. She was probably trying to get things done or doing stuff with her own friends and here he was getting in the way instead of saving it for a therapist.

“I’m sorry, this was a really silly idea. I’m sure you’re busy. I’ll just- I’ll hang up-“

“No no, it’s fine, it’s fine. I’m currently at home reading a book I’ve read a million times by now. What do you want to talk about?”

V, surprised but happy he wasn’t rejected, recalled every instance he’s talked or spent time with the detective. There was one particular thing that had been bothering him.

“Remember in the taxi when we travelled to Rika? Your partner was yelling at you over the phone and he said that this case was personal to you? What did he mean?”

“I…” She fell quiet. V was tempted to apologize but his curiosity grew ever larger.

“Yes, the case is personal to me, in a way. But I don’t know if I can talk about it now.”

“That’s alright. It wouldn’t be fair for me to force it out of you.” He heard her chuckle.

“What book are you reading?” He asked.

“Oh, this is my favorite. It’s about a girl who’s destined to save a prince from his own demise, but she defies fate and takes the story away from the author.”

“I had no idea you were into those kind of stories. I expected it to be a detective.”

“Hey now, I’ll have you know I have a whole shelf full of Agatha Christie!” She argued defensively. V laughed then promptly yawned.

“Hani.”

“Hm?”

“Will you read your book to me?” It was a suggestion that came out on a whim, something his tired mind didn’t realize was a bit too weird to ask. He remember when they were kids, how Jumin insisted on reading the books he found in the Han private library to him. They had always made him feel better, no matter what had happened in the day.

“Sure. I’ll start from the beginning.”

Her voice wasn’t at all accustomed to reading out loud, her volume sometimes not matching to what was said. Nevertheless he let the story wash over him, feeling sleep crawl into his bones. Soon he was dreaming of ducks, ballerinas and a pen that was mightier than any sword.

 

He woke up to the sound of his alarm. He stayed in bed a few more moments, contemplating his life. He made a mental note to call Hani back at some point to apologize for falling asleep during her story. Not right now though. He was going to set things right with the people who’d been standing behind him all this time. He was determined to make the same promise to everyone in the RFA as he had with Yoosung. No more lies, no more secrets. He wanted to be there for his friends from now until forever.

And he knew it was time to break up with Rika.


	4. Release

The entire concert hall was filled with the sounds with camera flashes, whistles and a thundering applause. V was seriously impressed with how much Zen had improved over the year, clearly stealing the show with his beautiful singing voice alone. He got up from the velvet chair and in a few minutes, an attendant appeared to escort him.

Backstage he heard cheering and the sound of champagne being opened. Actors were talking to each other, props were being dismantled and equipment unplugged. There was a buzzing vibrant atmosphere and it was so loud he could almost see it. While walking, the attendant notified him of any cables or stairs he would have to pass. When they stopped, he heard him knock on a wooden door.

“Come in!”

The door opened and V stepped inside alone, carrying a large bouquet of white lilies. Instantly voices of surprise washed over him.

“V?”

“V!”

Zen was of course accompanied by Jumin but to his surprise he heard the voices of MC and Jaehee as well.

“Zen, congratulations! The musical was absolutely perfect.” He smiled, a little sheepishly in the hope they wouldn’t kick him out. He held the bouquet out in front of him.

“Thank you V! To be honest, I didn’t know you were in the audience.” He felt Zen take his bouquet. There was a nervous feeling in the air.

“I bought a last-minute ticket so I was sitting in the back of the hall. I heard everything perfectly though.” 

He took a small breath. Come on, you can do it. 

“I also came here to apologize. I’ve… come to realize that by pushing people away I’ve only ended up hurting them instead of helping them. Yesterday I promised Yoosung I would stop hiding secrets and I’ve come to offer the same to all of you. Especially you Jumin. I want to do better for all of you.”

He did not expect to suddenly be enveloped in a soul-crushing hug. By the feel of the suit, it had to be Jumin.

“Jumin…”

“I was worried I had lost you forever.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for, V. I know you haven’t been doing so hot lately. But you can tell us anything, we will understand.” Zen said.

“And we will do the same as well. We’ve all had our issues but there’s no need to keep them from friends.” Jaehee agreed.

V nodded, holding back tears.

“Guys, you’re making me cry.” MC said blubbering. They all burst out laughing. God, it felt so good to laugh with the RFA again.

Jumin let him go and the five of them returned to the subject of Zen’s musical, Jaehee describing her favorite scenes in detail. Zen was constantly switching between pride and embarrassment with the way the girls delighted in his acting skills. Jumin feigned jealousy and ordered a bottle of champagne for them. Their conversation lasted well into the night and they were slightly buzzed on alcohol by the time the janitor came to kick them out.

It was the most fun V had in a long time.

 

A few days later, he was relaxing in Jaehee’s café drinking the best espresso he’s ever had. The café was busy but Nara had put out a table just for him in the corner. He heard teenagers and elderly gossiping while the smells of all kinds of coffee and chocolate hung in the air. He should come visit more often, he thought.

His phone buzzed. “Detective Hani calling.” The robot voice spoke to him.

“Hani, hello!”

“Hi V, how are you?”

“I’m doing great. I wanted to apologize for falling asleep during your story. I can assure you, it wasn’t because I was bored.”

Hani laughed. “It was 1 AM when you called. When I heard you snoring, I decided to hang up and get to bed myself.”

He heard her being interrupted by a voice he couldn’t identify chastising her for calling friends under work time. He heard her apologize and explain she was calling for work related purposes and returned to him.

“Right. So the reason I called is because I wanted to inform you that we’ve made a pretty important discovery. Remember when you told me about Dr. Jerry Gray?”

“Ah yes, Rika’s former therapist.”

“Correct. When we ran the name through our database, we found that he had changed his name recently. You’ll never guess what that is.”

V shrugged, then realized Hani couldn’t see that. “Well, what is it?”

“Dr. Shin Houng.”

Wait a minute. “Isn’t that… the man whose wife got strangled?” He tried to keep his voice down a bit, not wanting anyone in the café to be alerted by what he was saying.

“Yes!” She sounded so excited. It was rather adorable. “Once his name popped up, the chief got really happy. We have wanted to dive into his files for ages but couldn’t because he kept screaming patient confidentiality. Now we have all the warrants we need because there’s no way this is a coincidence. Whether it’s for his safety or others.”

It was then V realized how serious it was that the murder was now properly linked to Rika. Did she manage to find someone to do her bidding behind the backs of the nurses? Was she actually giving orders to kill people? “So did you find anything of note yet?”

He turned his face towards the window so that Jaehee and Nara didn’t see his facial expressions. 

“Nothing so far. Tell me, when exactly did Rika visit Dr. Gray slash Houng?”

He counted back in his head. “Definitely 3 years ago.”

“Right, right…” She was quiet for a few moments, he could hear her tapping her pen on a piece of paper. “V, here’s the bad news. Rika is now our prime suspect. Or at least mine. I haven’t told my partner about your confession. We’re going to have to bring her in for serious interrogation.”

V sighed, rubbing his face. For a few minutes he seriously considered just letting Rika go to jail. But then they’d find out about Saeran. And that he shot him. Maybe Saeran would be able to get off without problems because he was under influence but the whole thing would be traumatizing. He couldn’t that to him and Yoosung.

Plus he wasn’t convinced at all that Rika had been able to give the killing orders.

“What if… I could get you solid evidence that there’s no way Rika could have… used my cult to murder people?”

“Oh? How would you get that evidence?”

“You know the guy who hacked into your computer? He’s kept cameras and tracking devices on Rika for ages now.”

“Oh right, the man with the numbers. I seriously considered arresting him but seeing as I wasn’t exactly keeping to the rules myself… Alright. If the evidence you give me is completely solid, we can stay away from Rika.”

He sighed in relief.

“Just be warned V, if there’s any sign of tampering, we will find out. You guys aren’t the only one with a mathematical wonderbrain.

“You can trust me on this – if I’m wrong, I will let you know as well. I want this to be over.”

“Alright V, I trust you.”

“I bet you didn’t expect a suspect to try and help you on a case.”

She laughed again. “This could get me into a whole bunch of trouble. But you’re a good man V. I mean it when I say I trust you.”

That was kind of her. He suspected the personal reasons she had for taking the case were also playing a part here. It was now up to him not to breach that trust.

“Thank you. Hey, I was wondering… I really enjoyed talking with you in the evening. Maybe we could do it more often?”

“Yeah, absolutely. It was fun reading you that story. And if I’m very honest, it feels good to talk to someone without it being about a murder case.”

“Don’t have many friends?”

“Comes with the job. Being a massive introvert doesn’t help.”

He chuckled. “Alright, I’ll call you.”

“Neat. Hear from you soon!”

V lingered on the phone a bit after she hung up. It was strange knowing that a few weeks prior when the whole investigation started, he couldn’t stand being around her. Now… she was something closer to a friend.

He didn’t dwell on it. It was time to get to business. He had to find out if Rika was a murderer.

 

17:05 – 707, Yoosung✧

_\- V has logged in -_

_707:_  
>Let’s beg Jumin for tickets!  
>It’s the V-man!  
>(▀̿Ĺ̯▀̿ ̿)

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>V, hi!  
>We were just talking about Zen’s hit musical

 _707:_  
>Poor intern Yoosung has no money to see it lololol

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>;___;

 _V:_  
>Saeyoung, Yoosung, hello  
>I’m sorry to interrupt the conversation but I have something very important to ask  
>Yoosung, can you message Jumin and ask him to come on the messenger asap?

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>I’m on it

 _V:_  
>Saeyoung, you’ve got all the footage of the cameras in Rika’s apartment and from the tracking device in her jacket, correct?

 _707:_  
>Of course  
>It’s all on a separate server I keep here.  
>Why?

 _V:_  
>I need it  
>All of it

 _707:_  
>ALL of it??

_\- Jumin Han has logged in -_

_V:_  
>Ah Jumin  
>The nurses keep a log of when they arrive and leave from Rika’s apartment right?

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Absolutely.  
>I check it regularly myself.

 _V:_  
>I need that too

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>What’s going on????

 _Jumin Han:_  
>I second those question marks.  
>What are you up to, V?

 _V:_  
>I just talked to Detective Hani  
>They have new evidence that claims Rika might be behind the murders  
>I promised that I’d give her my own evidence that Rika couldn’t have done it  
>By proving she was never anywhere where she wasn’t supposed to be  
>That she was always watched  
>And the people watching her are completely trustworthy

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>Woooooooow

 _Jumin Han:_  
>This is absurd.  
>But I can definitely help.  
>I’ve got all the papers.

 _707:_  
>Same  
>Jumin, if you scan everything and send it to me  
>I’ll compress everything so it’s actually transferrable  
>Before that though, I’ll comb through everything  
>So we can be 100% sure

 _V:_  
>Thank you so much  
>I definitely owe you guys

 _707:_  
>I’ll remember that!  
>(¬‿¬)

 _Jumin Han:_  
>I don’t know what I find more bizarre.  
>The fact that the detective actually told you all this.  
>Or that she’s allowing you to collect this data.

 _V:_  
>Actually we’ve met and called a bunch of times now  
>I’m sorry, this was something I’ve been keeping from you as well  
>By trying so hard to keep Rika out of the spotlight, I actually put her right under it

 _Jumin Han:_  
>At least she seems to be on our side.

 _707:_  
>Holy shit  
>You know what this means right  
>WE HAVE SOMEONE ON THE INSIDE  
>┬┴┬┴┤ ͜ʖ ͡°) ├┬┴┬┴

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>Saeyoung nooo  
>We shouldn’t abuse V’s new friend like that

 _707:_  
>Pff Yoosung is so boring  
>Right, I’m going to traverse through months of data  
>V, you owe me!

 _V:_  
>I totally do

_\- 707 has logged off -_

_Jumin Han:_  
>Are there any other secrets that you’ve been keeping from us that we should know about?  
>Before we’re faced with another large surprise.

 _V:_  
>Just one I suppose  
>But I don’t think it’s right to say it now  
>Not until I’ve visited Rika  
>I can assure you however that it has nothing to do with the murder case. 

_Jumin Han:_  
>Alright then.  
>Does that mean you want to visit Rika?  
>I’ll send Driver Kim over.

 _V:_  
>No no no, not yet  
>I want to get all this in order for Hani first  
>Plus I promised the nurses I’d leave her alone for a small while  
>My last few visits weren’t exactly… good for the both of us

 _Jumin Han:_  
>I see.  
>Mysterious till the very end.  
>Also, ‘Hani’? First name basis already?  
>I’m happy you’re making new friends but did it have to be the person who is investigating us?

 _V:_  
>Haha  
>I don’t know how it happened but it just did

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>If there’s anything I can do, please let me know!

 _V:_  
>If I think of anything, you’re the first person I will contact

 _Yoosung✧:_  
>♪~ ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ

 

For the entire week V was busy with relaying the data they had. Every day Saeyoung would have compiled a data pack which he directly e-mailed to Hani. V would call to check if she received it and Hani would confirm that her department was busy double-checking it all. V regularly checked the messenger to update everyone on the new situation. 

Occasionally he’d call Saeyoung to make sure he wasn’t overworking himself but MC assured him she made him eat, sleep and take breaks. At one point Saeran dragged him over to Yoosung’s apartment where he was forced to relax and play videogames for an afternoon.

In the evenings V called Hani to ask how it was going and to listen to the books she read. When she was too tired, he’d put on an audiobook of his own and she’d fall asleep listening to it. His evenings felt a lot less lonely. 

Despite all the good that had happened this week, he found himself wishing he was a bit more useful. He didn’t have Saeyoung’s brilliant mind or Hani’s detective instinct, Jumin’s business sense or Yoosung’s drive. He was a blind photographer. Those thoughts would sneak into his mind so now and then and he’d distract himself quickly. No point in dwelling on things that have been.

When Saeyoung told him he had checked everything up till today and found absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. When Jumin confirmed that there’s no way Rika could have slipped away and that all the nurses had certificates from the highest ranking official possible, V felt a weight lift from his shoulders. Rika wasn’t a murderer after all.

It left Hani with the unfortunate matter of losing her prime suspect but she was very grateful that the RFA went through so much effort for this. She told him she was going to double down on Dr. Houng, who had been extremely uncooperative. He hoped she could solve the case soon.

 

It was Thursday evening when V called Hani. Outside it was raining non-stop, autumn having no mercy on people outside. When Hani picked up, he could hear the rain.

“Hey V! Is it okay if I call you back later? I’m working on a different case right now.”

He hung up and busied himself with the messenger. A few hours later she rang him back. By the sound of things, she was still outside.

“V, I know this is way too last minute but is it alright if I can come over to your apartment? My head is killing me right now and it’s at least a 20 minute drive to either the station or my home.”

“Of course. Have you eaten?”

“I have but if you have an ice pack that would be great. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

An ice pack? Was her headache that bad? He decided to call the guy who did regular deliveries for him.

“Heeeey V! My favorite artist, what’s up?”

“Hey Tom. Could you do me a favor and bring me a few beers and an ice pack?”

“Of course, of course! It’ll be there before you know it!”

Tom was punctual as always. Hani on the other hand was taking her time. He was contemplating on calling her again when he heard his doorbell.

When she walked in he noticed something was off. She sat herself down immediately at his kitchen table, her voice a bit low as if it was hard to talk.

“Here’s the ice pack you wanted.” He offered the cold bag to her.

“Oh thank you so much, it’s actually starting to sting.” He could hear the bag slosh as she applied it to herself.

“What is?”

“Oh right. Give me your hand.” He reached out and she gently brought it to her face. He could feel the warmth and the curve of her cheek and then a large swelling around her eye. She hissed as he traced it.

“Ouch. What happened?” She put the pack back on her eye.

“Can’t go into details but a guy didn’t take kindly to being asked where he’s been. Punched me right in the eye before I could take him down. Of course, he’s now the one crying in custody so it’s not too bad. Thank you for letting me come here, I think if I had gone 20 more minutes without ice I would have cried.”

“Does this happen often?”

“So now and then they try to get a hit in but we’re trained for it, so don’t worry. It’s the first in a long time since I was caught so unaware though. I’m getting rusty.” She laughed and then groaned. V chuckled sympathetically.

“Do you want a beer?”

“Oh God yes, can I? That would be fantastic. You’re the best host V.”

He reached into his fridge and gave her a bottle, taking one for himself.

“Ooh twisty lid, fancy.” He heard her take a gulp before he could offer her a glass. Ah well, screw etiquette.

They chatted about their week, her work and his friends for quite a bit, reveling in the warmth and comfortable atmosphere. V started on his fourth beer, now feeling a little tipsy.

“Remember when you asked me why this case is personal to me?”

V nodded, listening intently.

“When I was small, my sister would be away a lot. We didn’t have a lot on our name, eating whatever the farm gave us. My parents always assumed she had some rich boyfriend she was sneaking off to but no matter how much they complained she wouldn’t tell them anything. I didn’t really care, I was busy being a brat complaining about my mom’s food every evening.

Later on I would learn she joined a cult. It was a group of people who preyed on young adults like her, telling her they could offer her a better life. A happier life. All of her friends and her took part in worshipping some guy in a robe who claimed he was ascended.

The police ended up arresting him and brought my sister home. Every time they wanted to talk to her, she would scream and rant about this guy, how he did nothing wrong, how fantastic he was. She begged me to lie for her whenever someone wants to question her, which I often did. I remember thinking she seemed like a completely different person, not the sister who would comb my hair and laugh at my dumb jokes. 

One day, she just… disappeared. She had taken all her belongings and vanished. My parents, my neighbors, the police – everyone looked for her for days. At some point they had to stop.”

Her voice was breaking up. He reached out to her hand, grabbing her leather jacket instead. She guided her hand to his and held it tightly.

“Is that why you joined the police?” V asked gently. He felt the familiar feeling of sadness creep around his heart.

“Heh. It was what drove me at that point in time. When I was 12, my parents moved to Korea. I didn’t understand why and ended up crying for many days on end. I didn’t understand that they wanted to leave behind the pain, start fresh in a new country.

By the time I joined the police academy, I had let go. My sister was gone and I will never see her again. I became a detective because I had a talent for it.”

“I’m sure the KNP is happy to have you.”

“Hah! No way, they hate it. I keep getting assigned a new partner each year but they can’t get rid of me. I’m surprised you’re not sick of me honestly.”

V laughed and carefully let go of her hand. It was strange but it was as if he could feel her smile. A lot of things made sense now. 

“Hey, thanks for listening to my sob story.”

“Thank you for confiding in me. I'm sorry I could not be more useful.”

"What are you talking about? You've been extremely helpful." He wasn't completely convinced by her words but nodded appreciatively.

Outside the rain was still pouring but it wasn’t as loud as earlier. He could hear rumbling in the distance, the sound of thunder coming closer. The wind howled so now and then, the radio was playing soft indistinguishable pop music and his beer fizzed a bit. It was cozy and alien at the same time.

He quickly grabbed his phone.

“Erm, I’m sorry if I killed the mood-“ He motioned her to be quiet, pressing the record button and allowed it to absorb all the sounds he heard for the next 10 seconds. He pressed his phone to his ear and replayed it. The quality was a bit off but it captured what he wanted. Perfect.

“Sorry, an idea just shot into my head.” He said.

“Oh, is this an artist thing?”

V smiled. “Pretty much. There were such unique sounds around us that I had to record them.”

“Ooh, like an audio photograph. Audiograph?”

He liked the sound of that. He remember his parents had one of those professional recording machines for making movies. He’d have to ask them for it.

“That is such a cool idea. Did you just come up with that?” When he nodded, she complimented him more, clearly impressed with his inventiveness. 

“Will you send it to me?”

“Of course.” It was a memento of their friendship. He would cherish it for a long while.

 

V was sitting in the taxi on his way home. His eyes were burning as he was trying to hold back his tears.

He had gone to Rika’s house for the every last time. He remembered taking a deep breath to try and calm his nerves. Remembered the specific tea he received from the nurses.

When Rika arrived she had hugged him but it wasn’t as warm as it usually was. He didn’t return the kiss. She didn’t even ask why he left last time. She sat there, asking about how his week was. It was as if nothing had ever happened. It had been so tempting to postpone, to pretend for a little while longer, but he couldn’t.

When he told her that it wasn’t working out, he expected her to scream. To cry. To rage at him, maybe even hit him. But she was quiet, her hand in his devoid of any grip.

“So it’s over?”

Her voice was so neutral it was terrifying.

“Yes.” He had trouble speaking. His tongue felt numb.

“I understand.”

She hadn’t said anything else. She just got up and left the room.

Had he made a mistake? He was so tempted to turn back once he stepped outside, to tell her he was joking and he’d love her forever, truly, really- 

No. 

This would have been easier if she was always cruel, always angry. The black hole in his heart was ever present, twisting and devouring him.

He imagined his friends with him. He knew they’d tell him they were proud of him, that he did the right thing for both him and Rika. That thought made him feel a bit better. Once he got home, he’d call Jumin. It would feel good to talk it all out.

As he got out of the taxi however, he was approached by two men. It was obvious they had been waiting for him.

“We’re from the KNP. I’m sorry sir, we have to bring you to the police station.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost done with this beast of a fic! Next chapter we get the big reveal and finally the happy ending V deserves.


	5. Supernova

V sat in the interrogation room fiddling with his cane, his jacket… Anything. He was bored out of his mind waiting. The only thing he heard in the room was the buzz of the lamp above him and the occasional footsteps outside the door. They had confiscated his smartphone so he sat there for half an hour plotting out what might be the worst scenarios in his head.

Finally the door opened. He sat up straight on his plastic chair as he heard two people walk in.

“Mr. Kim. I’m Detective Park and you know my partner, Detective Hani.” Ah right, him. He had secretly hoped he could talk to Hani alone.

“Yes, I remember. How can I help you, detective?” 

“I’ll get straight to the point. This afternoon we intercepted a package that was to be delivered to your house. It was a box filled with benzodiazepines from an unknown address in China.”

V blinked a couple of times. “Filled with… pardon?”

“He means psychoactive drugs. The drug you said your fiancée was drugged with.” Hani helped.

Ex-fiancée he thought at first. Then it hit him. 

Oh. Shit.

“I-I did not order those. I wouldn’t- I didn’t-“

“Calm down Mr. Kim, no one thinks you ordered them.”

“What my partner is trying to _say_ ,” Detective Park stressed the word so much, he must be glaring holes at Hani, “is that all evidence is now pointing to the fact that someone is set you and Rika up. However we’d like to get a formal statement from you. Did you order these drugs?”

“No.” V said resolute. This seemed to satisfy the male detective who told him he was free to go. That’s it? They dragged him here just for a yes or no question?

The moment he stepped outside, he felt someone touch his arm. He recognized her scent instantly.

“Sorry for that V, official business and whatnot. However, there’s something interesting you might want to know. We have reason to believe Dr. Houng is trying to set Rika up. Ever since we brought up Rika as his patient he’s been constantly on edge.”

He turned to her, trying to keep his voice as low as hers. “Her former therapist? But why?” Was he part of the cult as well and did he never recognize him?

“We’re not sure yet. But we have him here, my partner just went to question him.”

V gulped. “I know I’m asking a lot but… I need to know.”

She didn’t say a word and walked with him to another room similar to the one he had been in. In front of him he could hear two men talking.

“Don’t worry, they can’t hear us beyond the glass.” Hani explained.

There were two voices. One of them was clearly Detective Park and the other was an older, raspy voice with an American accent who had to be Dr. Houng. He stepped forward a bit and touched the cold glass.

“So you deny any knowledge of Mint Eye? You have not seen this logo anywhere either? Nor do you know anything about this drug they use?”

“You are all wasting my time.” Dr. Houng growled.

Next to him, he heard Hani rustle some papers. “Time to go.” She said before she left the room. Soon enough he heard her voice again, this time beyond the glass.

“Dr. Houng, I just got off the phone with a certain someone in China. When I asked about the drug, he told me someone in Korea had recently ordered a box full of them. And guess whose name he happened to drop?”

Dr. Houng said nothing.

“We don’t need more proof than this. We know you’re trying to set someone else up. Why? Could it be that you do know about Mint Eye?”

Again, nothing. V felt tense.

“Dr. Houng, we have more than enough evidence to put you behind bars for multiple lifetimes. Two murders. Masterminding a cult. Trafficking malicious and illegal chemicals. Make it easy on yourself. If you confess, you will get a reduced sentence and with good behavior, you will still be able to live part of your life outside of jail.”

The silence that came after Detective Park spoke was killing him. V prayed to any God that was willing to listen to him now for something, anything-

“Yes. I did it.” His heart stopped.

“Did what?” Hani asked.

“I gave the order to murder Ben and to deliver the package to Rika’s fiancé.”

V couldn’t even think anymore. He heard one of the detectives press a button which he recognized as a video camera.

“Start from the beginning, Dr. Houng.”

Dr. Houng told the detectives all about how was tired of how depressed his patients were, how the world was killing them and he had the one who would save them all. He needed help however and most patients weren’t susceptible to the idea until he met Rika.

“Rika was my greatest achievement. Her obsession to bring people happiness was something I could use. I amplified her feelings, justified them constantly. In just a few weeks she understood what needed to be done. We stopped seeing each other but we kept in contact via phone calls in public areas to avoid being noticed. She told me she was setting up Mint Eye – a ridiculous name but apparently it had something to do with her boyfriend – and I supplied her with a large amount of a special drug I had cultivated myself. Later I outsourced that cultivation to a factory in China, as the hospital was become aware of their missing chemicals.

At some point I cut off all contact with her and changed my name. She was doing her best but I could hear her holding back. If she believed something had happened to me, I knew that would push her over the edge. I had planned to contact her in around five years. Imagine my face a few years later when I get a patient who tells me that he was part of a cult named Mint Eye and was trying to stop his nightmares. I learned all about how Rika had failed. What a disappointment. If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.”

He chuckled, the sound was pure evil in V’s ears.

“I tried to convince the young man to continue with Mint Eye. I suppose he wasn’t ready to handle it. My wife happened to be the only one in the room when he snapped.”

He didn’t even sound remorseful. He wanted to strangle him.

“I convinced him to mention Rika to the police but to keep quiet about anything else, lest the wrath of Mint Eye would descend on him. Through pure coincidence I learned that Ben was nursing Rika thanks to my gossiping colleagues. And the rest, well, you know it.”

“All this was to implicate Rika?” Hani asked.

“Correct. She failed so she had to be punished. It’s only natural, detectives.”

V was shaking. **“You asshole!”** He yelled at the window. He wanted to punch it but was afraid they’d hear him. Hot tears ran over his face. He pushed his forehead against the glass, wishing that somehow he could have reversed time. Back to where he asked Rika to go to him. If only…

 

The interview wrapped up as Detective Park handcuffed the doctor and escorted him away. The door next to V opened.

“V…” Her voice was soft, concerned. He knew he looked like a mess. He was a mess. Gods, why did this man have to exist? 

“If I hadn’t sent her to him… I should never have suggested a therapist.”

“V.” She grabbed him by his arms, holding him steady. “Listen to me. This is not your fault. This man is evil and used you both. There’s no way you could have known. This is not. Your. Fault.”

He nodded but the tears wouldn’t stop running. He wrapped himself around her, sobbing heavily on her shoulder. She rubbed circles on his back, whispering soothing words.

After a while, he felt a little calmer but also dizzy. Carefully he let the detective go.

“It’s over, isn’t it?” He asked, nearly stumbling over words.

“Yes, it is. It’s finally over V. You should go to your fiancée, tell her the good news.”

“Actually, I broke up with her earlier today.” It just flopped out of his so matter-of-factly, he nearly laughed while his eyes burned.

“Oh!” Hani gasped. “Oh crap I would never have… I literally dragged you from one craptastic moment to another. I’m so so sorry.”

“No, don’t be. Both things were important and I’m glad I got to see everything to the end.” He found that he meant it. He didn’t feel the need to run back to Rika, to apologize and to comfort her. Of course he would tell her the truth. But their future together was long gone, he knew that for sure.

“I’m glad you managed to get his name from his Chinese contact. That must have helped a lot.”

Hani laughed. “That was a bluff. We have no idea where in China he got his stuff from.”

V gaped at her. She giggled.

“Come on. Let’s get you home.” He looped his arm around Hani’s and allowed her to walk him through the police building.

“I don’t know much about the law but shouldn’t he have had a lawyer with him?” He asked her.

“We offered but he refused. Honestly if he had never sent that package, we wouldn’t have anything on him. Hell, he could have just denied everything no matter what. I think he wanted to get caught.”

V hoped that this vile man would stay locked up for as long as he lived.

The moment V got home, he instantly broke the big news to everyone in the chat. He stayed up the entire night as he was constantly called by worried members of the RFA. Surprisingly enough even Saeran called and he bonded with the young redhead. He practically passed out in the early hours of the next day while on the line with Jumin.

In the morning the news was all over the television and the radio. Dr. Houng was even giving interviews, as long as the police would allow him to speak, talking about Mint Eye as the legacy he’d leave behind. V couldn’t stand listening to him for longer than a few minutes. Saeyoung may joke about being God but this guy truly thought he was one. It was disgusting.

He comforted himself with the fact that the guy wouldn’t see the sun for a long time.

 

13:15 – Jumin Han, V

 _V:_  
>I’ve made a couple of recordings that I’m very happy with  
>Hani allowed me to get some sounds in the police building  
>I was thinking of coupling them with photographs

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Like a short video but more tangible.  
>I think it’s a fantastic idea.  
>I’ve spoken about it to some of my clients and they really loved it.

_\- ZEN has logged in -_

_V:_  
>Hey Zen!

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Hyun <3

 _ZEN:_  
>Hey babe!  
>V, sup~

 _V:_  
>Rehearsing for another musical?

 _ZEN:_  
>Yeah, we’re on a break now  
>I had the weirdest dream last night  
>It was so vivid I can’t stop thinking about it

 _V:_  
>Tell us about it

 _ZEN:_  
>I dreamt we sent Rika away  
>To some cold but beautiful place full of forests and mountains  
>She seemed happy there

 _V:_  
>Huh  
>Actually that reminds me  
>Rika told me she really wanted to visit Alaska some day  
>She said the place was magical to her

 _Jumin Han:_  
>Hmmm.  
>Maybe we should send her to Alaska then.

_ZEN:_  
>Really??

 _Jumin Han:_  
>The doctor told me that Rika would benefit from a fresh start.  
>A place that makes her happy seems like a good idea.  
>I can arrange a family that wants to take her in.

 _V:_  
>I think that’s a good idea

 _Jumin Han:_  
>So it’s settled then.  
>I will make a few calls.

 _ZEN:_  
>I can’t believe we’re doing this  
>But if you guys think it’ll do her good, so be it

 _V:_  
>Thank you Zen  
>I hope she will finally be happy there

 

“Remind me why I’m doing this again?”

Today marked exactly two months since the arrest of Dr. Houng. Since then life went on, a little different than before. Rika was in Alaska. The RFA was busy with a last minute charity party. Hani and he swapped out evening stories regularly. And he was actively recording sounds for his newly found audiograph project.

He hadn’t thought of the idea to hold any value beyond the sentimental but with encouragement from his friends he continued to roam the city and beyond. Jumin had shown a few of the recordings to an owner of an art gallery and he called him to voice his excitement. Though even if he hadn’t, V found he really enjoyed creating something again.

He travelled all over the city to find unique sounds. Whenever Hani had time, he took the detective with him, who enjoyed the idea of helping cultivate something she saw the birth of. Sometimes he’d bring others from the RFA but not a lot of them had the patience for it. He figured once he got himself a seeing eye dog, he could travel further, maybe to the countries he’s made photos in before.

They were standing at the beach during a heavy storm. The sand was constantly getting in their faces and the umbrella they had with them got wrecked by the wind. The rain was getting into their clothes and soaking them to the bone. They found shelter under a small stone beach pavilion and were trying to get the recording apparatus V brought started.

“Because you said yes when I asked?” He said smug. Hani punched him lightly on the arm.

They managed to start their recording and they sat down together, listening as he held the microphone. He would often record for a long length of time and then listen to the whole track to find those perfect ten seconds. Hani called him a true artist, only they would be mad enough to do so. He had laughed at that.

The wind grew with intensity and he felt Hani wobble, so he held her steady against him with his free arm. She was smaller but definitely more muscular than him. He doesn’t remember when exactly he started to focus on her whenever they touched but he found it hard to ignore. They were always communicating with each other, be it through their trips or over the phone. He realized just then during the crashing waves and howling wind there were very few moments he was thinking of her.

There was another burst of wind and he could feel her holding on to his equipment to keep it safe. He moved her closer to him, their legs touching and his arm now properly wrapped around her waist.

“Careful V. I might just fall in love with you.” She joked heartily. He laughed but his mind went all over the place.

His new thoughts were terrifying. Was it too soon? What exactly is the waiting period when you break up with someone who was supposed to be the love of your life?

Any ideas he might have had on replying to her were completely gone when another gust of wind threw sand in their faces. They decided to it was a good time to leave and they hastily walked to her car. Thank goodness they had brought towels.

 

The RFA party was as busy as always. It had been V’s first charity party in a year so Jaehee took it upon herself to make a delicious cake which was now being happily devoured by the Choi twins. Zen had to steal away a few slices for the others, chastising the redheads for being so gluttonous. Jumin, A-Yeon and MC were busy with their guests. Nara, Yoosung and V were discussing ideas for the Christmas party.

“Hey, isn’t that the detective who interviewed us back then?” Nara suddenly said, interrupting their conversation.

“Oh yes, that’s erm… what’s his name again?” Jaehee wondered. Him?

“Park?” V suggested.

“Yes!”

Why was Detective Park here though?

“I invited the KNP as well. I figured it wouldn’t hurt getting connected with them.” MC seemingly appeared out of nowhere, as if she could read his mind.

“Also, I brought someone who wanted to see you.”

“Hey V!” A high-pitched voice greeted him cheerfully. He smiled widely the second he heard it.

“Hani.” He reached out and she grabbed his hand. Always warm. “I didn’t expect you here. I thought introverts didn’t like large crowds?”

“Oh no, large crowds are not a problem, events like these just exhaust me after a while and I need to recharge by being alone. Are these your friends?”

Within an instant, the rest of the RFA introduced themselves and bombarded her with questions about her profession as a detective. Soon she was taken away from him to try Jaehee’s cake and to answer even more questions, especially from Yoosung. Zen and Saeyoung stayed behind with V at one of the standing tables.

“She seems nice. Nervous but nice.” Zen said.

“What is she wearing?” V asked, curiosity getting to him.

“Trousers and a blazer, black. She sports it well, though it’s a stark contrast with the other girls and their dresses.” Zen remarked.

Always the professional, V mused.

“So. Have you two banged yet?” Saeyoung asked casually.

“W-what?!” V said startled, face instantly red. He could hear Zen hit him loudly on his head.

“Owww!”

“That’s what you deserve for being a pervert!”

“I’m not! Just asking what everyone is wondering!~” Saeyoung said in a sing song voice. Zen denied it angrily.

“We-we’re not a couple.” V stammered.

“Seriously? By your faces I swore you guys would have at least kissed by now.” Saeyoung huffed.

Zen mumbled something about him not being wrong. V blushed, sometimes he wished he wasn’t such an open book.

“What are you two doing to Jihyun?” Jumin’s deep voice announced his presence.

“Ah, managed to get away?” Zen joked.

“Yes, the Ambassador of Mexico is a rather clingy fellow.”

“Can you believe that V hasn’t asked Hani out yet?” Saeyoung sighed dramatically.

“Oh? Do you want to? I can ask her for you.” Jumin, direct to the point of frightening.

“Nooo! Jumin, he can do it himself. It’ll be weird if you do it!” Zen protested.

V bit his lip. “I don’t really know if I should. With… you know, me and the whole…” He made circling hand movements in the air. He didn’t want to say it. His past, his present… He still wasn’t the person he wanted to be. He wasn’t the person he thought anyone deserved.

“Jihyun. She got to know your secrets in a short amount of time and she decided to become friends with you. Isn’t that proof enough that she’s accepted you already?”

Sometimes Jumin’s business logic was what he needed to ground him. He felt a strange sort of calm wash over him, felt his mind be at ease. The rest of the group returned to them at that point, Hani absolutely raving about the cake. Discussion flowed and stupid jokes and laughter and time passed way too quickly for V’s liking.

 

After two hours Hani said her farewells to the group, exhausted from all the attention. Saeyoung asked her if she could bring V home because for some reason his car was having issues and waiting to get it fixed would take sooooo long. V, though embarrassed, found himself unable to refuse and walked with her, ignoring the feel of the RFA’s eyes on his back. He was going to get interrogated to hell and back on the messenger tomorrow.

Outside another storm was starting to form. He sat in the passenger’s seat, his cane on his lap, fiddling with his necklace as he tried to calm his mind. He barely paid any attention to the discomfort of the tight car belt. When she got into the driver’s seat and closed the door, he turned to her.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course. What is it?”

Be selfish, he thought. Selfish. Kick down that door.

“What if… I said I had fallen in love with you?”

He would’ve given anything to be able to see right now because she was so quiet. He heard rumbling outside as thunder was slowly getting close to them.

Suddenly he felt a hand upon his chin, gently leaning against his cheek.

“Then I would ask if I could kiss you.”

As if by automatism, he lowered his head towards her. Her lips met his, soft, slightly chapped and blazing. His senses were overrun with the smell of spice and a hint of sea. When they ended the kiss, he could feel her breath, shallow and quick. His heart was beating so hard it easily overpowered the sound of thunder.

On the journey back he had planned on taking it slow. Planned to perhaps take her out to dinner somewhere nice, maybe have a few typically romantic dates. But when he entered his apartment, he could feel her hands on his body, heating him up. Everything he had imagined in the car flew out of the window.

That night he took his time to map out every part of her body, ingrained every curve, muscle and tiny scar into his memory. She fell asleep on top of him and he followed her soon after, completely engulfed by her warmth.

He knew she would completely turn down the idea of him sacrificing himself for her. He found comfort in that, knowing that he didn’t have to be the sun that burned up in someone’s universe.

They would orbit around each other instead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm DONE YEESSS! Ever since I finished the after-endings, it really bothered me that Rika at her young age was somehow able to professionally run a cult. So this fic not only satisfies my need to make V happy, it also adds to the idea that Rika wasn't the actual mastermind. Not that this fills all the plotholes (and I'm sure some things in the fic don't make sense) but it's good enough for me. Now that I finally got this out of my system and everyone has a happy ending, I will probably just focus on writing more short stories on all my favorite pairings for the When In Time universe.
> 
> Next up, JuminZen!


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